Surprises
by Zudinmulamshius
Summary: Five years after the events on Oban, it's the anniversary of the day the Earth Team left for Alwas. The Earth Team is in the midst of a reunion, but the party's about to be crashed in more ways than one. Poor Don Wei... he's always hated surprises.
1. Chapter 1

This is the second fanfiction I have written, but the first in the Oban Star Racers category. Hence, I may not be the best. Constructive reviews are much appreciated!

This is set five years after the ending of the series. Eva is twenty, out of school, and racing for her father's team. It's the anniversary of the day the Earth Team left for Oban, and Prince Aikka has recently arrived on 'ambassadorial duties'. Unfortunately, the party's about to be crashed...

I don't own Oban Star Racers or any of the characters, sadly. If I owned it... the ending would have been much different.

Surprises

Eva smiled when laughter broke out in the garage. She finished rummaging through the fridge for everyone's drinks and lugged the armful of cans and bottles out to her friends. "Hey, drinks're up!" she called, tossing Rick his cola. Two mechanics and her father relieved her of her burden, so Eva found a clear crate and plunked down on top of it. "Man, it sure wasn't this hot out last year!" she grumbled, prying open the bottle of cherry pop she held. "Aikka, how'd you get here, anyway? Don't you have prince stuff to do?"

Aikka grinned and chuckled, an unusual sight from the reserved prince. "Supposedly that is what I am doing—ambassadorial duties." He shrugged. "Besides, I have much time to myself. It will be a while until I must take my father's place."

Eva gaped. Now _there_ was a side she hadn't seen before! "Man, you're brave! My dad would have my head if I just up and left for Nourasia like that!" she guffawed, winking at her father. Don Wei gave her a wan smile, knowing full well how many times she had tried to trick him into leaving Earth. Vacations to Alaska turned into vacations to Alwas, trips to Eurasia turned into trips to Nourasia... the starship lines probably wondered if he was insane, booking and then suddenly unbooking flights.

Stan snorted. "Pfah, he's a robot anyway." Koji elbowed him, but Stan was already laughing.

Eva smiled, glad to see even her father laughing at Stan's old crack. Ah, but she had to defend him somehow! "Nothing like Sul. Now there's a robot."

Aikka nodded his agreement. "What happened to Sul, I wonder?" he mused aloud. Eva fell quiet and the two mechanics shrugged.

A shriek came from the right hangar of the Wei garage, followed by loud clacks and more shrieks. Aikka sighed and stood; G'dar wasn't going to calm himself.

Over the shrieks, which would not abate despite Aikka's efforts to calm his mount, Eva could swear she heard some kind of high yell... that was getting louder...? Looking around for the source, Eva grumbled and stood; she stomped over to the water tanks and peered into each, checking the purifiers. Odd... neither seemed to be the source of the noise.

Eva straightened just in time to hear the explosion as the ceiling above her imploded, whereupon it started raining wood and metal. A particularly big chunk splashed into the tank she stood in front of, drenching her. Sopped, shrapnel-sprinkled, and shocked, Eva stared up at the ceiling. An oblong hole about six and a half feet long and three feet wide had been punched into the ceiling. What the...?

"Aww, _man_..." a man's voice groaned. Eva shut her eyes.

"You said it," she retorted smartly.

"That... was not something I have experienced before..." a much different, stranger voice said. Eva's crimson eyes snapped open. Who...? She looked down at the water tanks, the source of the new voice, and was dazzled by brilliant blue and gold light. The gold light disappeared suddenly, leaving only the blue to reflect off of everything painfully. Blinking owlishly, Eva finally managed to make out the figure next to the shining blue blob.

"Well, speak of the Avatar." Don Wei said weakly from somewhere behind Eva. She could only stare into the dark brown eyes that stared back at her equally dazedly.

"Uh... hi M-Molly... you... you're all w-wet..." Jordan Wilde stuttered.

A much disheveled and rather nonplussed Sul threw his arms over the edge of the water tanks and regarded Jordan and Molly with a haggard, disbelieving stare. "You said you would get us home," he accused Jordan, looking back at the young Avatar. Jordan nodded very slightly, at which Sul sighed. "At least we are in the correct dimension. Thank you, Avatar, for retrieving me and for taking the shock of our landing. I suggest next time you transport anyone you try to avoid structures." With that, Sul vanished in a shower of little blue lights.

There were about five seconds of nothing but beetle shrieks before anyone did anything but stare.

Eva was at the tank before she knew she had even moved. She grabbed the miraculously unharmed Jordan and dragged him bodily out of the tank. Plopping him on the crate she had occupied a moment ago, she pulled up another and stared. Jordan stared back.

"I, um, I think I'll go get a towel..." Koji muttered. Don Wei nodded his thanks.

"That would be good, Koji." With a nod to his two recently re-hired mechanics, Eva's father strode over to Jordan and Eva. He bent at the waist so he was on eye level with both, arms folded behind his back and business face on full power. "Jordan."

Despite his Avatar status, it was clear that Jordan was still the employee in this relationship. "Yes sir?" he asked meekly. Don Wei raised an eyebrow.

"This," Don Wei said flatly, "was a surprise." He smiled. For some reason, Jordan was reminded more of an alligator. "I hate surprises."


	2. Chapter 2

Here's Chapter Two! I suppose I should note that this is a Jordan/Eva fic, with a little one-sided Aikka/Eva. I think I resolved it well enough, but... oh well. Enjoy, and review if you'd like. :)

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Jordan opened and shut his mouth a few times before anything managed to escape. "I, uh, sir, uh, I can explain! I... um, see, I, uh, went and got Sul, and... what the HELL is _Princey_ doing here?!"

Aikka was a little surprised, to say the least. "I might ask of you the same thing..." he replied. He looked up at the hole in the ceiling, then examined Jordan and Eva briefly. "Go for a swim?"

A towel was thrown over Jordan's head. "More like a splashdown crash landing," Koji noted as Stan screwed with the towel. Jordan pulled the towel free and shooed Stan with it, sighing and straightening his two-toned hair.

"Yeah, whatever..." Jordan grumbled. He paused in his grooming when he noticed the unopened can of soda pop in a dumbfounded Rick's hand. "Hey, sweet! I haven't had a can of that in years! Got some more of that?"

Rick pointed to the refrigerator, whereupon Jordan leapt up to pilfer its contents. Don Wei sighed and sat back down nearer his daughter, chin in hand as he observed Jordan's fridge raid. While the young man was absent, the former star-racer leaned in to Eva. "Hey, did he...?" Rick started hesitantly.

Eva nodded. "Yeah, he did. Ceiling. Magical blue glowy guy. He's the Avatar now." She shrugged, smiling for Jordan as he returned with not one, not two, but three cans of his favorite drink. The Avatar plunked down next to his partner, opening a can and taking a swig. "Guess he's still no good at piloting, though."

Jordan made a half-hearted protesting sound. Swallowing the mouthful of soda pop, he smiled. "Naw, piloting's not for me."

Don Wei cleared his throat. "No, I would say not. However, I do know one thing that _is_ for you, Avatar or not." He pointed to the hole in the roof, and Jordan groaned. Don Wei's face softened unexpectedly. "You'll start in an hour, I suppose. You should have time to talk with friends."

Jordan smiled. "Thanks, sir." His eyes flicked to Eva's. "So, uh... how are you?" He noticed Don Wei's firm glare and beckoned to Aikka, Rick, and the two mechanics. "A-all of you, yeah! How are you?" He laughed nervously.

Prince Aikka chuckled. "I am fine, as is G'dar. We decided to visit, as it had been five Earth years since we had seen any of you."

"He snuck out," Eva put in, giving Aikka a conspiratorial elbow. The prince merely smiled, not at all loath to bask in the new respect his younger human friends suddenly had for him.

"I could not bear another moment without the lovely Earth princess," Aikka explained with a smirk that only grew when Jordan visibly bristled.

Stan elbowed Rick. "This should be good," he whispered in the taller man's ear. Rick just shook his head. He didn't know about the alien boy, but Little Mouse definitely had her gunner on a leash.

Jordan barely restrained himself from leaping from his seat. The prince looked positively smug; just to goad Jordan further, he sat down beside a befuddled Eva and put his arms around her. Jordan's growl became a strangled cry of outrage when Eva's cheeks reddened. "How's that cheek, Jordan?" Aikka asked, raising one eyebrow.

"That's it! Hands off my partner, pal, or I take 'em off for ya!" Jordan exploded, poised to pounce on the source of his jealousy. He was met with uproarious laughter. Deflated, Jordan glared daggers at Aikka as the prince patted Eva's shoulder and stood back from her. "Her... her dad wouldn't like you doin' that, just lettin' ya know!" Jordan said hastily, trying and failing to recover some of his dignity. He sat down and lifted his soda pop to his mouth, only to spill the stuff down his shirt.

Aikka smiled, watching Eva as she threw the towel over Jordan's head again. It was good to see his friends again. He'd have to come and visit more often, perhaps. Humans had a way of making things interesting. Perhaps if he came to visit again, Jordan would be there to provoke as well. The boy was amusing.

Don Wei was also smiling. It had been a long time since he'd seen Eva smile so brightly, much less around a boy. Some surprises weren't so bad... which reminded him... Casting an exasperated look at the starry sky through the hole in the roof, Don Wei beckoned to his mechanics. "Stan, be so kind as to find something to patch the roof with?" he called. The redhead mechanic nodded, ambling off with Koji not far behind. Don looked back at his daughter and his former gunner. Yes, it was good to have the team back together. 'Now all we need is a Whizzing Arrow IV and we can get back to work!' he thought with a chuckle.

Jordan rolled his eyes when Stan and Koji returned with a roof panel, a hand drill, and a riveting kit. "Well, guess that's my cue... you paying me for this, old man?" he asked, raising an eyebrow expectantly at the team manager. Don Wei merely returned the raised eyebrow. Sighing, Jordan stood. "All right, all right, lemme get the stuff and I'll get to work. See you guys, I think."

Eva's whole body felt like it had suddenly turned to lead. He... thought? She tried to say something, but all she got out was a bewildered little squeak as Jordan met her eyes. No way! Eva willed her body to move its ponderous limbs. He would not just up and vanish this time! Taking in a bracing breath, she stood and walked to stand beside the young Avatar. They shared one glance—one infinite second of locked eyes—and came to an agreement. "I'll help," Eva exhaled, looking back at her father. Don Wei smiled and nodded, resuming his conversation with Rick. He understood.

A copper hand rested lightly on Eva's shoulder. Aikka smiled. "I believe I am going to retire for the evening. Thank you for your hospitality, Molly. Jordan... a word between men?"

Jordan nodded, if a little hesitantly. He smiled for Eva as he and Aikka headed for the adjacent hangar.

Aikka petted G'dar fondly before turning to face Jordan. "I... I am not certain how to word this. You... you love her, do you not?"

Jordan nodded. "Yes. Absolutely. Why?"

Aikka sighed. G'dar whistled and bumped his rider in affectionate concern. "I... I am very... enamored with her, as well. Please, let me speak." Aikka raised an open hand. Jordan folded his arms and glared. "If... if you intend to court her... then I demand that you cherish her for both of us. She and I... we are too different—human and Nourasian, alike only in spirit. Our mortal love would be barren, devoid of life. But you... you are human. You can give her everything I could ever give; you can give her everything I could never give. Jordan, promise me, on your honor as a man, that you will never make her cry but for joy. That you will let her be free, the way she could never be if she were with me. That you will protect her and treasure her, exactly as she deserves to be. That you will make her happy... for both of us. Her smiles... they are one of the most beautiful things in the galaxy. Make her smile—love her for both of us."

Jordan was speechless. He didn't know what to say, really—Aikka really meant all that. "I... I will," he said finally, smiling for the prince. Aikka returned the smile and bowed.

"Thank you, Jordan. Thank you."

Jordan turned and left, unable to look at the prince's smiling, tearful face any longer than he had to.

Eva looked worried as Jordan returned. "Is everything all right?" she queried. Jordan nodded. He had a promise to keep, and worrying her wasn't a part of it.

"Yeah, you know—guy stuff." He smiled genuinely; Eva seemed reassured.

"Okay. Follow me, you can get to the roof through my room. Dad had these built like the Alwas pits, so my room's right on it." She hefted the drill and the riveting kit, leading Jordan up the stairs in the back of the hangar. Her room was in the same place as it had been on Alwas. It was just as messy as it had been, too—it seemed some things didn't change. Eva clambered out of the round window, putting down her load to help Jordan get the roof panels through. Jordan himself came through last.

"Uh-oh... it's cloudy. I hope it doesn't rain," Eva noted, looking skyward. Jordan looked up and nodded.

"Well, I guess we should hurry up then. Got the drill, partner?" he asked, smiling. Eva fumbled blindly with the supplies, eventually locating the hand drill and passing it to him. Jordan heard her drag the riveting kit to his side while he fitted the roof panels over the hole. As he worked, Eva was quiet. Jordan fixed one of the plates in place with a few rivets before he put the tools down and looked for the young woman.

Jordan didn't have to look far—she was sitting on his right side with her arms around her knees, watching him. He sat back and met her gaze. They sat there and just looked at each other for what seemed like forever. Jordan wondered what she was thinking about. "I... Jordan?" Eva called quietly, blushing a little. "I... missed you." She smiled hopefully.

Jordan scooted closer and put an arm around Eva's shoulders, leaning in to rest his forehead against her temple. "I missed you too."

Thunder rumbled overhead, startling both young adults. Jordan went back to the roofing—he'd have to get it done fast to beat the rain! Eva took the drill and started putting in the holes for the rivets, shooting an imperative look at Jordan when he didn't start riveting at once.

As the last rivet went into place on the first panel, a raindrop hit Eva's hand. She looked at it, then looked up at her partner. Jordan shrugged, pulling the other roof panel over the hole. They worked on in hurried silence while raindrops continued to come down in a steadily increasing flow. Halfway through the last panel the shower turned to an outright downpour, drenching the two as they rushed to finish and get inside.

"Jordan! I can't see! The rain's coming down too hard!" Eva shouted over the roar of rain drumming on the metal roof. Jordan found her hand and squeezed it, holding on as he let a little of his Avatar form shine through. Gold light from his free hand lit the area and gave the two just enough visibility to make it to Eva's window.

Eva shivered as she put the tools outside of her room for Stan to find. "You cold?" Jordan asked gently, rubbing her hand between his. She smiled.

"Yeah. I, uh... you can go downstairs, I'm going to take a shower and get in some dry clothes..." Eva said shyly, hurrying out of the room. Jordan watched her go, heading downstairs. Dry clothes would have been nice.

Don Wei and Rick looked up as Jordan's boots clanged on the metal stairs. "Thank you for finishing, Jordan, and I'm sorry about the rain." The smile on Don's face wasn't sympathetic, of course—if anything, the manager was restraining laughter. Jordan rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I'm sure you are. Anyway, I, uh... you still have any of my stuff left?" Jordan flicked his hands, flinging water off of them. "I'd like to get out of this mess."

Don Wei thought for a second, then nodded. "I think we should... check upstairs, I saw your bag somewhere up there." He smiled for Jordan. "The only room that's taken is Eva's, since she likes to come out here sometimes. You're free to stick around as long as you can."

Jordan paused, startled. He smiled widely. "Hey, thanks!" Pounding back up the stairs, Jordan disappeared into the first room of the second floor.

Rick looked at Don Wei curiously. "You'd let them stay here alone?" he asked, surprised. Don Wei sighed and nodded.

"I believe... it's time I let Eva do as she wishes, and that includes letting her pursue the one person she has had in her head for nearly six years. Jordan is a good, strong boy, not to mention the protector of the galaxy. He... I trust him to respect and take care of my little girl."

Rick looked back up the stairs. "Yeah... Little Mouse ain't so little any more."

---

I just realized that the paragraph indentations aren't appearing online. If that's been bugging you, it's bugging me too. Next chapter will be around as soon as I can get it done. Thank you for reading thus far:)


	3. Chapter 3

One new chapter for the peoples. Sorry this took so long! Moving the pairing forward before the storyline isn't advisable, but... I couldn't resist. Standard disclaimers apply.

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Jordan stood in front of the door to Eva's room, torn. This was the last place where his things could be... but was he willing to risk either of the Wei's wraths? Eva was frightening when she was angry, and that was what he remembered from five years ago. Don Wei... well, he was Don Wei. Enough said.

Ah, Jordan's mind argued, but if you only opened the door quietly enough that she didn't hear... Jordan shook his head. Couldn't get caught thinking like that. He raised one hand to the door and knocked.

Eva opened the door, clenching her terrycloth robe around herself even though it was tied shut. She felt her cheeks warm when she saw Jordan standing there. "Uh... hi, Jordan...?"

Jordan couldn't talk. He just couldn't—his mouth would not move! He blushed as she watched him, self-conscious in the worst way. She wasn't a little girl any more; no way... did his hair look all right? "I... uh... your dad said... stuff, looked for... dry... clothes?" he mumbled, cursing his scattered thoughts and the opaque terrycloth.

Eva disappeared behind the door. A duffel bag, a little worse for wear, was pushed through the opening. Eva's face reappeared, shy smile in place. "I saved it," she told him. Jordan smiled warmly and put his hand over the one she had clenched around the duffel's handles.

"Thanks, partner." Jordan reluctantly let Eva's hand slip out from under his and took the full weight of the duffel.

Eva blushed prettily and escaped back to her room. Jordan smiled as he made for the bathroom; that rosy blush brought back memories from Oban. Some were simply sweet; some were tinged with sorrow. Shaking his head, he pushed back the busy emptiness of the past five years and got out of his cold, clammy clothing. He turned on the shower and put his head under the hot spray. It distracted him long enough to bring up better memories—the time they had fallen asleep side by side, even if it had been in the doorway of the flying temple... watching the sun set on the beach on Alwas... those had been good times.

When he decided to get to the cleaning part of his shower, Jordan sighed and grumbled. He hadn't had any luck while sifted through the bottles on the shower's soap ledge. This had to be Eva's shower—there wasn't a sign of a single soap without a pretty smell. Certainly those smells were nice on Eva, but on him? The Avatar did not smell like pomegranates and mangoes, thank you very much.

Jordan slid the curtain aside and shivered at the still-chilled air of the bathroom. He hastily opened the cabinet over the sink and found a bar of soap, thanking Eva's fascination with old-fashioned things as he opened the box and fished out the little white square. He turned to jump back into the shower, looking up briefly out of habit.

Jordan was just in time to meet Eva's eyes as the bathroom door opened. He screamed, she screamed, the bathroom door slammed, and the shower curtain was almost yanked off of its rod all at once as both panicked.

Eva leaned on the door, breathing heavily. "OhmygodohmygodohmyGOD," she gasped, hastily re-tying her robe. She was going to have to get used to the 'sharing the bathroom' thing, especially since it was a male she was sharing it with. Even more important, that male was Jordan. Jordan was... well, he was Jordan, and she liked him, and... well, he was very, very male.

Footsteps echoed up the stairwell; Stan and Koji appeared. They stared at Eva, who just stared back. "What's wrong, Eva?" Koji asked.

Apparently, the look on her face and her location had answered the question for Stan, for the hardware specialist's eyes grew wide. He slapped a hand over his mouth and dragged Koji down the stairs again, whispering in the slight man's ear as he left. Koji's 'oh!' was distinctly audible over the awkward silence that had fallen over the general Garage 2 upstairs bathroom area. Eva bit her lip and learned what 'being self-conscious due to a guy' entailed.

Jordan heard Eva's breathy exclamation of shock outside the bathroom door. Oh my god indeed, he thought. She just... walked around like that?! He turned the water to cold. He was going to have to talk to her about that. He didn't mind so much... well, he wouldn't if it weren't for other guys being around.

Eva knocked on the door this time. "Uh... J-Jordan, um, uh, I kinda... forgot to, uh, brush my teeth, and, uh... um..." she stammered, mentally slapping herself when she realized that she sounded like a complete schoolgirl. The water turned off in the bathroom; Eva heard a zipper being pulled open hastily.

"Uh, hold on, just a sec..." There was some frantic shuffling and muffled cursing. "Um, okay, yeah, you can come in."

Eva opened the door and slipped in. Jordan smiled through his toothbrush, scooting aside so she could use the sink. She couldn't help glancing over his pyjama-clad form every now and then. It'd been a while, but she was quickly re-learning why she had liked him at first. She blushed when their eyes met; they both looked away hastily.

They bumped heads as they went to spit, sputtering apologies as they both grabbed the same glass. Jordan pushed it into Eva's hands. "Mm, you can have it!"

She blushed and gave it back. "No, no, you take it! It's okay!" Eva put her hands behind her back and stood a little uncomfortably as Jordan rinsed his mouth. "Uh... I'm, uh, really sorry I just came in like that, and, uh..."

Jordan blushed. "Uh, no! Really, I don't mind... wait, I don't mean that like, you know, I like it, but I'm not mad or anything like that! Yeah, um, that's what I meant to say! Don't worry about it! Here, here's the cup, um... I need sleep, it was a long day before I came, yeah!" He made his escape to the room he'd deigned 'his' and shut the door behind him. If embarrassment could kill, he'd be quite dead.

Eva slunk to her room and curled up on the bed. Slowly, a smile formed on her face. This had been quite an enlightening evening, if embarrassing beyond all comprehension. She hoped dearly that Jordan would still be around tomorrow; there was definitely some charm to that whole shy and embarrassed thing, and she really wanted to catch up with him. Five years was a long time for two friends... no, partners. Five years was a long time for partners to be separate.


	4. Chapter 4

It's been far too long since the last update… I'm feeling inspired, though, so hopefully the trend won't hold. Now for the plot... standard disclaimers apply.

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Don Wei's brow furrowed when he noticed light coming from under Eva's door. "That girl, leaving the lights on everywhere..." he grumbled, putting his cup of tea down on the counter. Striding across the townhome's kitchen to his daughter's room, Don Wei opened the door. Brilliant light flashed, then everything went dark.

Don groaned. His head felt like it'd just been hit by a baseball bat... what on Earth had happened? He had gone to turn off the light and... why couldn't he see? He was about to shout for help when he heard deep, resonant voices from somewhere overhead.

"I thought you said that it was the young female's room."

"I did, and it is! The old male went in for some reason! How am I supposed to know—these humans are the weirdest things in our galaxy!"

"This is why we never follow his plans! I told you he'd screw something up."

"Hey! It would have worked if you hadn't been so impatient!"

"So what do we do?"

"The old male is the young female's progenitor. Humans are especially attached to their progenitors, so the old male should be important to the young female. We could still lure her here with him."

"Knowing Jordan, he will follow her if she sets out to retrieve her progenitor."

"Yes, and he will be furious when he discovers that we're the ones who perpetrated the old male's disappearance! He may refuse to work!"

"Won't be any different than when he was distracted watching the young female."

"You be silent! This is your fault as it is! All right. Let's just get her here and go from there. How hard could it be to negotiate with one young female human?"

Don Wei sat up. "If you're discussing my daughter, then I assure you, you will never convince her of anything." His statement was met with silence. "If you won't harm her, then I will help you bring her here. You'll need my help if you need hers."

"This may be more troublesome than we previously thought..."

"Be quiet, screw-upper."

--

Eva woke with a start and scrambled into her pyjamas. Was he still here?! Had he been spirited away by the Creators and put back to work?! Spurred on by her fountain of horrified Jordan-abduction theories, Eva dashed from her room and knocked on his door. She knocked again when he didn't answer, then a third time. Finally, past all politeness in her desperation to see if Jordan was still on Earth (much less in the solar system), she opened the door.

Jordan was sprawled across the bed, snoring softly. His two-toned hair was mussed and his pajamas were disheveled; the sheets had been evicted to the floor. Eva smiled and leaned against the doorframe to watch him sleep. Her thoughts decided to give her a little trouble, though—why stand in the doorframe when she could go sit on the bed? Why sit on the bed when she could lie in it?

Eva swiftly dispatched that last thought. As much as she liked it, they weren't anywhere near that point. Not only that, but it would be pretty tough to lie down on the bed with Jordan taking up so much of it! She opted instead to sit down on the side of the bed, and, with a little mental pep talk, she picked her way across the room to the bedside.

As she lowered herself onto the bed slowly, Eva was struck by how young Jordan seemed in his sleep. The moonlight through the thin curtains in his window wasn't dissimilar to the silvery nighttime light on Oban, and, for a little, Eva could almost imagine them back on that fantastical world. She remembered Spirit's warm, dark form, she remembered Prince Aikka's youthful charm and lithe grace, and she remembered Jordan. Solid but rough-hewn, Jordan had at first been an unwelcome intrusion into her world. Arguments were not uncommon; she could not believe that there was someone who could be so… so… aggravating! He was a stupid boy, just like the rest—he thought he was better than her just because she was a stupid girl, quite unlike Rick, the big macho awesome-racer-champ dude. Time passed, though, and so did their animosity. It was just after the last race on Alwas that Eva had realized something: Jordan wasn't so bad. Naturally, she had fought that, but it couldn't be made to disappear. She liked him. More time passed, and she began to find herself truly interested.

Now there was a whole new story, Eva thought with an inward laugh. Sure, she knew all about hot guys and gross guys, but she hadn't realized what 'hot' entailed until she'd collided with him head-on in nothing but their boxer shorts and tee shirts. That had taught her quite well that, when a guy was labeled 'hot', it meant he made the girl feel hot all over! It was then that a whole new side of herself and her interest in Jordan had to be reconciled with somehow.

Jordan mumbled and rolled to his side, curling up around Eva's hips with a protesting noise. Eva blushed, all too aware of his warm body so close to hers. Now she couldn't escape without awakening him! She choked back a squeak as one of his hands fell along her leg. The hand twitched and Jordan suddenly went still behind her. Looking back, Eva locked eyes with her partner.

Jordan was first to break the silence. "Uh… hi. You're… in my bed?" He and Eva both blushed as his statement registered with his body. Eva didn't move away, though, which only made matters worse. Jordan made a despairing noise. "Crap, Eva, uh, you, uh, I, er… you're in my bed…"

"Holy monkey wrenches, she is in his bed…!" came a male voice from the door. Both gunner and pilot looked up in horror at one very surprised mechanic. Stan's face didn't split in a grin, though he would have liked to laugh at the situation. There were more important things to attend to. "Okay, so this is totally awkward, but you gotta let me talk. Molly, have you seen your old man today? He isn't answering his mobile and Rick says he's not at the townhome or at the Wei building."

The awkward situation fell away instantly, replaced instead by a growing worry that none of the three wanted to entertain.


End file.
